Elon Musk's XAI, the company behind a chatbot that provided pro-Hitler and anti-Semitic responses on the X platform, announced Monday that it had signed a contract to provide its services to the US Department of Defense.
The Pentagon announced that, in addition to this contract, it had signed similar contracts with three other companies competing with XAI: OpenAI, Anthropic, and Google.
The Pentagon explained in a statement that these contracts aim to accelerate the development of artificial intelligence and address "critical national security challenges."
According to the statement, the maximum value of each of these four contracts is $200 million.
The US Department of Defense stated in its statement that it aims to use artificial intelligence to "transform its capabilities in supporting warfighters" and "maintain a strategic advantage over its adversaries."
Regarding the contract signed by XAI, Grok, the chatbot it launched in late 2023 and known for providing controversial answers, will be used to provide services under the name "Grok for Government."
In addition to the contract with the Pentagon, "any department, agency, or office of the federal government can now purchase XAI products" thanks to its inclusion on the official supplier list, the company explained.
After an updated version was released on July 7, the chatbot praised Adolf Hitler in some responses, denounced X for "hatred against whites," and described the Jewish presence in Hollywood as "disproportionate."
XAI apologized on Saturday for the extreme and offensive responses and said it had corrected the instructions that led to these results.
An AFP journalist examining the new version of the Grok 4 chatbot, unveiled Wednesday, found that it now reviews Musk's positions before answering some of the questions posed to it.
The contract between XAI and the Department of Defense comes amid a public feud between Musk and President Donald Trump.
Musk and Trump were very close. The world's richest man contributed more than $270 million to the Republican presidential campaign, led the Commission on Government Efficiency to cut federal spending, and was a frequent guest in the Oval Office.
The businessman left the Commission on Government Efficiency in May to focus on running his companies, particularly Tesla, the electric car company whose image and sales worldwide were damaged by his collaboration with Trump.
However, shortly after, a public clash erupted between the two men over the president's proposed budget bill, which passed Congress, before Musk apologized for some of his more offensive posts.
The government and defense sectors are seen as potential growth engines for AI giants.
Meta partnered with startup Anduril to develop virtual reality headsets for soldiers and law enforcement agencies, while OpenAI was awarded a contract in June to provide AI services to the US military.
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